Breakups are Killer in American Remake from IFC Over Your Dead Body (OVERLOOK)

Title: Over Your Dead Body

First Non-Festival Release: April 24, 2026 (Theatrical Release)

Director: Jorma Taccone

Writer: Tommy Wirkola, Nick Ball, John Niven

Runtime: 105 Minutes

Starring: Samara Weaving, Jason Segel, Timothy Olyphant, Juliette Lewis

Where to Watch: Check out where to find it here

This film’s review was written after its screening at the Overlook Film Festival in 2026.

In 2021, Tommy Wirkola released The Trip, a Norwegian film starring Noomi Rapace and Aksel Hennie. The action horror comedy was well received before getting scooped up by Netflix. Now, director Jorma Taccone is releasing the American version in Over Your Dead Body.

Dan (Jason Segel) has given up on his marriage to Lisa (Samara Weaving). Frustrated at her coldness and lack of support for his career, Dan has made the decision to kill her during their weekend cabin retreat. Little does Dan know that Lisa has secrets of her own that will complicate his plans, namely her plans to murder Dan. The two face off in an explosive battle of dominance all while insisting that the other is the problem. With their weekend just getting started, the duo will find the experience to be much more painful than couple’s counseling.

Over Your Dead Body is a solid action horror comedy that delivers tension and plenty of laughs.

As a remake, Over Your Dead Body doesn’t do much to update its starting point. Instead, the selling point of Over Your Dead Body comes from the cast. Samara Weaving and Jason Segel have pitch perfect chemistry and comedic timing, which makes every interaction bloody hilarious. The humor is mostly situational but there are some well-timed gags and jokes that are just different enough to catch the audience off guard. Of course, the rest of the cast do great work here but to say more would venture into spoilers.

Over Your Dead Body develops Lisa and Dan to make their partnership feel authentic. Early on, it’s clear that they have their problems. A general chill between the two is only thawed by quick barbs and genuine acts of romance that are few and far between the spells of silence. It’s once they reveal their plans for the other that years of pent-up rage and frustration burst out. Each has understandable gripes with the other but Over Your Dead Body doesn’t concern itself with evening the score between them. Instead, the couple are tested by each other and outside forces to put their relationship into perspective. Without minimizing their issues, Over Your Dead Body shows that communication, a willingness to empathize with the other’s needs, and a little humility can transform a relationship for the better.

The humor is where Over Your Dead Body soars. Awash in great jokes, there is something for everyone here. Silly one-liners and over-the-top line deliveries highlight the absurdity of the couple’s situation while the punishing physical comedy keeps the film firmly within genre cinema. Over Your Dead Body doesn’t let up, even as the film transforms through new story developments. It works because Over Your Dead Body is committed to making each moment feel important and each character’s needs are accounted for in every confrontation.

It doesn’t all land though. One of the problems carried over from the original, Over Your Dead Body’s decision to keep a very questionable and unfunny scene amongst the carnage prompts confusion and condemnation. Starting with a chalk circle and ending with a pool table, it’s a tonally inconsistent moment in an otherwise light-hearted, feel-good film.

Impressive fight choreography and gleefully demented gore set pieces bring the action and horror to the front during the film’s second and third acts. Over Your Dead Body makes great use of its open setting to make typical cabin fixtures far deadlier than ever imagined. Lawnmowers, speedboats, and plenty more see the couple in the most disastrous applications possible. It’s silly, fun, and light, like much of the approach of Over Your Dead Body.

A capable American remake that neither re-invents the wheel nor sullies anything sacred, Over Your Dead Body is a fun action horror comedy that delivers on its zany premise. If the off-the-wall story, kills, and jokes don’t do it, the excellent cast will make this relationship horror impossible to forget. Over Your Dead Body is a solid film that any genre cinephile will find themselves cheering on, especially once the blood starts spilling.

Overall Score? 7/10